Looking out for everyone’s safety is our primary focus at Eldorado Gold. But there are some members of our team who go above and beyond to ensure the safety of their colleagues. Eirini Psychari is one of those people.
If you work at Eldorado’s Kassandra Mines in northern Greece (Olympias, Skouries, Stratoni ), you may already know Eirini, a mining engineer, who is also likely the only woman certified as a mine rescue emergency responder in Greece. She is also the first female mine emergency responder at Eldorado’s Greek operations.
In September 2017, Eirini completed a two-week emergency response training (ERT) course in Halkidiki.
“I made the decision to join the rescue team because I wanted to be able to help my colleagues in case of an emergency,” she says, noting the valuable knowledge of procedures and regulations she gained throughout the course. During the two-weeks, Eirini participated in rescue simulations where everyone “felt the intensity and the need to do the best we could.”
The physically demanding course taught her how to respond to road accidents, hazardous material spills, fires, and underground incidents including those that require search and rescue operations.
Eirini was able to test her leadership skills during the course, which built confidence in her own abilities. “I had the opportunity to lead the team twice. Being the team’s captain, I realized that I have the ability to be calm and perform under pressure in a challenging environment.” She also learned valuable communications skills and discovered “that I am much stronger than I thought!”
Eirini’s commitment and dedication during the course were guided by her belief that “Life is the most valuable thing. The fact that this course emphasizes the importance of mine safety and emergency management is important.”
To mark International Women’s Day, we are proud to highlight Eirini’s achievement as one of the invaluable contributions all our women make across Eldorado’s global operations.
As our industry works toward greater inclusion and respect, Eirini’s advice to women in mining is to “Seize the opportunity and take advantage of it, by working as hard as you can.” Inspired by these words, Eldorado will continue to provide opportunities for women like Eirini to realize their fullest potential.
Happy International Women’s Day!
